Piezo Drop on Demand Technology: This is one of the simplest ways of generating drops on demand. It makes use of the Piezi Electric effect in which small electronic impulses delivered to suitable crystalline materials causes them to expand. This transducer, incorporated in the ink chamber, enables pressure pulses to be created in the ink. Droplets are generated intermittently according to the electronic signals received.
Several variations exist if the basic mechanism by whcih srystal of Lead Zirconium Titanates(PZT) turn electrical signals into mechanical pressure pulses to produce ink droplets. There are shear mode, bend mode, push mode, squeeze mode or hybrid or coupled mode.
A number of patended designs, and manufacturers exploit these various machnisms to differing effect.
These printers have the advantage of much greater print head life than the thermal based systems ( 100 times). Piezo inkjet printers are now in use in a number of printers for textile substrates. A number of companies ( e.g., Konica, Mimaki, Epson) are producing and developing wide format piezo printers for printig wider width cloth.
Advantages of Piezo Inkjet Printer systems are:
- Ink Formulation: as the inks are not heated, the formulation can be less critical and hence the inks are less expensive.
- Well suited for high volume prinintg.
- Reliability is built in through design.
- Uses a wide range of ink formulations (solvent, water, UV curable).
- Produces high resolution using small droplets.
- Capable of using binder containing pigment inks.
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